By:Cindy J. Roth
Ignored traffic-safety concerns along Merrick Road in Bellmore between Newbridge Road and Bellmore Avenue have many Merrick Road business owners angry and frustrated. So, the Bellmore Chamber of Commerce, on behalf of its 350-plus members and the Merrick Road Merchants group, recently asked the county to improve potentially hazardous conditions there.
In a recent, written request to county Executive Thomas Gulotta (R-North Merrick), the chamber asked the county to conduct a traffic study of the Merrick Road strip. The letter says the number of traffic accidents along this stretch is disproportionately high compared to other parts of Merrick Road. It also says accidents seem to be increasing at an alarming rate. The chamber blames increased traffic and a lack of traffic controls on the road for the problem.
"I see one to two accidents a week and a half-dozen near misses," said Ginny McClean, owner of Have You Heard boutique at Merrick Road and Park Place.
McClean, head of the Merrick Road Merchants group, started last year to discuss common business problems along the thoroughfare and to try to solve them. She said traffic has been bad on Merrick Road for years. The merchant organization wrote letters to the county complaining about unsafe driving conditions in the area, but their letters have mostly gone unanswered, according to McClean.
Recently, she said, no-parking signs were installed on the curb in front of her store. The no-parking signs helped deter motorists from stopping there, but large delivery trucks pull up to the curb anyway, she said. The problem with the trucks is that they block the view of motorists trying to make turns east on Merrick Road. McClean said cars have to edge up so far to see oncoming vehicles that they end up in lanes with moving traffic.
Turning west on Merrick Road is not any easier. Because there are no traffic lights at the intersections between Newbridge Road and Centre Avenue, cars can spend several minutes waiting for the chance to turn onto Merrick Road.
Erika Hardcastle, a Park Place resident for 48 years, said she has only seen traffic worsen over the years. Hardcastle goes out of her way to avoid turning west on Merrick Road.
"I don't make left turns [onto Merrick Road] from 8 a.m.-10 p.m.," Hardcastle said. "I go around through back roads to get to Newbridge Road, where there is a signal. It is very difficult to turn [from Park Place]. Most people feel the same, and something has to be done."
Chris Lanza, owner of Vincenza restaurant at Merrick Road and Park Place, said it takes too long to turn onto Park Place, regardless of the direction a driver is heading.
Speed also concerns Lanza. He said many people drive 50 mph, 15 mph over the speed limit, which makes merging into traffic safely almost impossible.
Dr. Eric Gott, of Silverman and Gott Family Dentistry at Sunrise Avenue and Merrick Road, said his patients often complain about the traffic problem on that corner. The intersection, which has a painted, white box to help drivers turning west on Merrick Road from Sunrise Avenue to merge into traffic, is worn down. Gott said many people drive through the box without stopping, making it hard for cars to merge onto Merrick Road.
The Bellmore Chamber received a letter recently from Joseph Pecora, commissioner of the county Department of Public Works, in response to its traffic-study request. Under direct instruction from Gulotta, the county's traffic engineering unit has scheduled the Merrick Road area for a comprehensive investigation, including accident history, traffic-signal operation, traffic flow and roadway geometry.
Ray Ribeiro, assistant director of traffic engineering, said the investigation is in its data-collection stage. He estimates the probe to be completed by the end of August, but the survey does not guarantee change along the road. The department is looking for potentially hazardous spots. However, even if an intersection on Merrick Road were noted as dangerous, it would not likely receive a traffic signal because of the study, officials said.
"They could get increased timing [for traffic signals] and increased signage in the area, but a new traffic light, not necessarily," Ribeiro said. "The study will result in just noting areas that need to be addressed."
Many Merrick Road business owners agreed that a traffic signal anywhere between Centre Avenue and Newbridge Road would be the first step in addressing traffic-safety concerns in the area. With the current traffic situation, they say, it is only a matter of time before someone gets seriously hurt.
Hardcastle was skeptical about whether Merrick Road would get a new traffic signal. Ten years ago, she said, many Bellmore residents petitioned for a signal at Park Place and Merrick Road, and they were denied.
